We know that border closures to suppress the spread of COVID-19 have been very challenging for farmers, processors and contractors.
NSW Farmers is advocating tirelessly to achieve some certainty for movement under a permit for essential agricultural workers and we welcome this week's announcement that starts to deliver this for those close to the Victorian border.
Access to workers is the main concern for agriculture, particularly with harvest season nearing for several commodities.
The wool industry needs access to shearers, the grains and dairy industries need technicians, horticulture needs seasonal workers, and processing plants need their regular staff.
Border closures have meant that overnight, workers located outside of NSW or designated border regions cannot access their place of work.
The border closures are also prompting fears for our horticulture industry, as well as for the seasonal workers who depend heavily on this industry for income.
Planning labour for the upcoming summer harvest of cherries and other stone fruit will be a challenge due to reduced numbers of seasonal workers.
While there is greater certainty for southern NSW, the future is still uncertain for those farmers close to the Queensland border and for our grain harvesters across the State.
The new permits for the NSW/Victorian border is a good step in reducing uncertainty and we strongly encourage the Queensland Government to follow NSW leadership as we all seek to operate in COVID Safe workplaces
With a bumper grain harvest looming in the northern NSW, similar steps must be made urgently to allow the movement of workers, contractors and machinery across the Queensland border.
We will continue to work with the Minister for Agriculture and the Department of Primary Industries to support them in pushing for an agriculture permit system for the Queensland border region to minimise any impact on farm businesses and make sure they can continue to produce high quality food and fibre to feed our nation.
- James Jackson, NSW Farmers President
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